30th January

A Black-throated Diver on the sea off Torness in the afternoon was an unexpected highlight today. Also off the more sheltered west coast were 4 Red-throated Divers, 2 Great Northern Divers and 242 Eiders, easily the highest count of the year so far. A drake Common Scoter also flew north past Torness and 4 Woodcocks flushed from the boulder scree suggested there had been a little cold weather movement. Other indicators were 4 Redwings newly arrived at the Observatory and a Song Thrush at West Beach. The 2 Glaucous Gulls remained in the Gretchen area all day and an immature Iceland Gull was seen briefly off the pier, while another was found recently dead along the west coast-the third individual known to have perished on the Island in recent weeks.